C.O.W. - #035: Creature That Grows Its Own Food Source - VOTING!!!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------redehlert:
concept: When God created the Ouroborosite to clean up the debris of time and space, He had no idea that the harmless creatures would rather eat everything in their paths. God's solution—the Ouroborosite would complete the circle and devour itself, for infinity (∞). The pain of hunger and ingestion is unbearable, but God, being cruel and just, gave the Ouroborosite arms to squeeze its tail good and tight, thereby robbing it of feeling while it force feeds in hopes of sating the undeniable hunger.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Plate:
concept: The Cactopus
Sometimes referred to as “the taxonomist’s nightmare,” the cactopus is remarkable in that it is the only sentient organism known to utilize photosynthesis. Its physiology is a seamless blend of plant and animal cell structures - it has a fully developed nervous system but no digestive tract; keen eyesight and an impressive capacity for learning, yet it reproduces through pollenation. As such, its evolutionary origins have baffled biologists for centuries. Cactopi thrive in even the harshest deserts of Astronia, where they spend much of their lives half-buried and anchored into the sand in a dormant state, living off the sun’s rays and what little moisture they can absorb from the desert air. In this state they are practically indistinguishable from the numerous barrel cacti that are common to the areas they inhabit. They typically move only when their immediate area becomes too cloudy or dry, but have also been known to deliver a surprisingly vicious attack when disturbed. At a glance, the cactopus may appear to be a direct descendent of the octopus, but despite the uncanny anatomical similarities to the ocean-dwelling cephalopod from which it draws its name, no ancestral connection has yet been found; it is possible that the resemblance is merely an astounding coincidence.
Some ancient legends tell of a creature known as the Kraktus, a gargantuan cactopus that, according to myth, could wipe out a whole caravan with the swipe of a tentacle. However, archeaologists have yet to find any reliable evidence that such a monster does or ever did exist.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------MIKECORRIERO:
concept: Canooot ( Ka ' Newt )
The Canooot is an amphibian approximately 20 inches in length with the tail included. They live in small ponds and swamps usually where underwater vegetation is available such as seaweeds wet leaves and other similar food sources. The Canooot has air filled sacs that it uses in order to store food which can be used when it moves to a new location and food may be scarce. While the food builds up in the sacs it begins to break down and special nutrients are filtered out so that the less useful portions of the vegetation can be discarded so that more room may be made available to the necessary elements. These air sacs are connected to large tube-like pores that protrude from the back and when the Canooot feels that its stock is completely necessary it will produce small portions encased in bubbles which it then swallows.
Spending most of its time on the bottom of the ponds, the Canooot has adapted its body to blend with its surroundings by mimicking weed and vegetations and burying half of its body. They are extremely quick using their 6 webbed limbs and large flat tail to thrust its body through the water.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------hwango:
concept: The Decay Flute subsists on insects, but with its awkward, slow moving body, it has developed a revolting way of obtaining them. The Decay Flute emits the scent of decaying meat from its six feeding orifices, which attracts various carrion-eating animals. When one of these scavengers gets too close, the Decay Flute aims one of its lower bulbs at the creature and launches a long spine coated in a quick-acting paralyzing toxin. The Flute then enters a semi-dormant stage while it regrows a new spine. Meanwhile, flies land on the carcass of the scavenger and begin to multiply. By the time the Flute reawakens, the new crop of flies is ready to be harvested, and the Flute snatches them from the carcass and the air with its eighteen whiplike extensile tongues.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Jonoy:
concept: Caelaenia ecelestia
The caelaenia is an asexual breeder capable of producing up to 80 offspring though their menstration cycle can take up to 70 earth years to complete due to its very slow metabolic rate.
The caelaenia tend to live in desolate and uninhabited places far from preditation where it can sit and contemplate its intrinsically solitary nature, both in mind and body. It cannot breed with another to increase its gene pool, it cannot eat that which it destroys and it cannot escape the fact that in the end it must feed and the only thing that feeds its body and soul is its own hate-made cancer.
This hateful thinking leads to an imbalance and build up of chemicals within the abdomen of the caelaenia which are highly mutatious and cause a cancerous growth to form within the abdomen that, once large enough, the caelaenia begins to feed on and prune into a sustainable growth. This pruning limits the metastasis, dysplasia and hyperplasia to the abdomen and several extended pseudopoian tentacles that act as gills for the cancerous growth which allows it to take in nutrients that feed the tumor and extend its growth.
The caelaenia then begins its main feeding pattern upon the excess cell growth that forms over time within the descented, bulging mass of it's abdomen. Not a happy life but then again if it were happy it would soon die of starvation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------br0ken spirit:
concept: Slyavi Gardeners
Despite their feral appearance, these creatures are herbivores. Living on the grassy planes of the Slyavi world, they grow their own food source. They travel to the forest regions in search of the Dgan Seeds, and then plant their own little gardens back in their own grassy territories. Dgan Seeds are hard to find, and when not in season, there are very few of them. This leads to heavy competition between the Gardeners, as they will try to steal the seeds and plants from each other. The Slyavi Gardeners use their three, fully independantly mobile eyes to constantly keep custody of their crops from being stolen, or from the plants being eaten by other wild animals. Their claws are their natural weapon and when sighting another Gardener in their territory they are likely to attack each other and attempt to claw each other's eyes out.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Tully:
concept: Navel Lint Gremlin
Hidden deep in the depths of every 6 year old's unkempt closet, there lives a creature known as the Navel Lint Gremlin. They are so called because their massive bellies, and equally massive belly-buttons, continually pick up stray fibres and hairs from all manner of crevice. These fibres are pushed deep inside the navel. They mix and grow, astonishingly, to provide the lint that is the food source for these odd little fellows.
Despite the occasional alarming run-in with the resident child or children, the Navel Lint Gremlin is harmless. They stand a mere 18-22 inches tall and prefer to remain hidden underneath the too-small sweaters and single socks from which they gather their unusual sustenance.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------silentkitty:
concept: Aiyani Newt
These strange little ocean dwellers spend most of their lives sitting on the ocean floor, nestled among coral reefs. Only eating once every six to seven months, they grow their only source of food within the stretchy layer of skin that lays over the animal's chest and belly. When it's time to feed, the animal opens the six little tubes on top of its back briefly, drawing in bacteria floating around in the water and storing them in the animal's belly skin flap. After absorbing a sufficient amount, the critter closes off the tubes and settles in to sleep. While in hibernation, chemicals are released into the area that the bacteria are being stored in, first multiplying them, then slowly breaking them down into a substance that it can eat. The result of this breaking-down process is an inflation of the creature's skin flap, which also begins to emit a white light when the chemical process is nearly complete. At this point, the creature awakens and harvests its new little crop by puncturing the skin (which heals quickly) and sucking out the food inside.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------pr0ph3t:
concept: The Caleocripix or as called by the natives of Gwanzora, the Kill Bug. Why? This species of insect are about 4 inches long at adulthood if they reach it. They are a very hostile species, towards eachother. All Caleocripix are hermaphroditic and are born ready to mate. Breeding occurs once in each insects lifetime and is in the first 10 hours after hatching. By 48 hours after hatching a Caleocripix will have anywhere from 100-800 fertilized eggs to lay. This is where it gets nasty. Once the eggs have increased enough in size the abdomen of the Caleocripix stretches and releases a scent which means dinner time for all other Caleocripix. Using the sharp saber like appendages they will attempt to kill eachother and eat the carcas and the eggs. However, usually 20% of the each generation of Caleocripix manage to lay their eggs and so even though the species is always fluctuating in population size, it has not yet gone extinct. In fact because of the large number of eggs that actually do survive, the population growth looked at on a large scale is steadily growing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Chuck,mate.:
concept: dancing bob
the "dancing bob" will outlive us all.
heck, he poops his own little prey buddies,
what more could anyone need?.
most of the time he just sit and stare.
likes - spining around, blinking, and mayo.
hates - loud noises, water, and blue things.
motto for life -"never shit where you eat."
females never survive the winter.
males are fine with that.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------cognition.sb:
concept: Siamese Wilderbeast
Some say this creature has two faces, and with 4 eyes and 2 'mouths' you can see why. The lower portion of its face has a long chin snout, used mainly for feeding purposes, while a normally dormant mouth sits directly above it.
However, this isn't the only quirky feature of the animal, in fact it's far from it. The animal survives purely on a phosphorus based mucus excreted from its pores (mainly on the underbelly). In its natural habitat, phosphorus is rare, and so this beast needs to recycle its bodily fluids to stay alive. The actual feeding process occurs throughout the day, with the snout being used to collect this mucus and transfer it into the creature's mouth above.
Because of the local food source, the creature has no need to hunt, and is consequently situated quite low on the food chain. Conveniently, this animal is lightning fast, built like a rock, and armed with a concealed spine which can extend out from a skin flap mid-forehead. When combatting a predator, the creature attempts to ram it, forcing this spine deep into the opponent. While the spine can kill through impact, it also transfers a batch of the glowing mucus, which is extremely poisonous to most animals.
Unfortunately, the severe evolutionary downfall lies in this creature's defense mechanism. With each spinal assault a significant amount of mucus is lost, effectively shortening the amount available for survival. While this creature could physically live for hundreds of years, through general mucus wastage and use in defense, its average lifespan sits around the 70 year mark. As an adept combatant, the Siamese Wilderbeasts' most common cause of death is starvation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------pvpham:
concept: Gardener
They burrow shallow holes which allow them a safe refuge against predators. They use their long tongue to gather and crop leaves and other plants from its surrounding onto its back. This effectively provides them the ability to camouflage into the wilderness while also providing a midnight snack.
This lifestyle is perfect. They sleep, they eat. The only time they move from there burrows is when they decide it’s time for kids or at least practicing making kids. Even then for these lazy creatures that may occur once in months.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------noche:
concept: To all personnel of the station,
We've found an ancient specie of worm nesting on isolated asteroids that was thought to be extincted. After their environments ran out of food and every other living being died, the bigger worms took advantage of its gemmative reproduction habits, evolving into a self-fed creature by eating it's babies, that grow of their main head. They've been there for hundreds of years without being noticed.
Be warned that these creatures are still aware of outer lifeforms,
DO NOT attempt to remove one of them by yourself, or your crew.
Report it's location to Central Command.
This is not the chubby worms we met back on Planet 502. They've grown.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------madplanet:
concept: The Pod Popper Slugis a grotesque, flabby slug-like creature that is behemoth in size. Since this relatively serene monstrosity would destroy everything in its vicinity if it ate plants or animals, it relies on its own unique form of nourishment. Pods that grow internally eventually make their way to the surface and when mature ripe enough they "pop" out and fall down to the ground in the organic channels formed into the sides of the slug. Since this critter has no eyes, it relies on the antennae to locate the pods for feeding.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Azrael:
concept: The Gromlid commonly found deep in the jungles of South America sprouts it's young from the pours of it's belly which are also it's favorite food source.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------guggenmaneuver:
concept: The poo-noodler gains nutrients only from frequent sexual activity, defecates through two funnels on posterior, and cleans the funnels with its elephant-like nose; speculation has circulated among scholars that this abnormal appendage perhaps evolved specifically for cleaning it's unusual set of funnel-like anii.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------artiphats:
concept: An inhabitant of Kwetso's 5th moon Lodigo, this little creature whose proper name cannot be pronounced by humans, has been affectionately called the "Thorned-Cabbage". A completely self-sustaining creature, the thorns growing off the tentacles serve a dual purpose. First, it uses the thorns to pick out the small redish-orange "berries" that grow off those same tentacles and feed itself. Second, the thorns are used to ward off would be vulture-like predators, who don't go after the creature for it's rather sour berries, but who prey upon it for its much sweetier black diamond-pupiled eyes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------JakkaS:
concept: Researches for Great Animal Encyclopedia of Planet Gobb
F'low and S'peehs
F'lows are very interesting species derived from insects like bees or dragonflies. In a way of evolution become a "Shepherds". At the begining of their existence they were hunting on S'peehs, small creatures that produce sweet juice. But scientists have found that after a few generations they started to breed s'peehs instead of killing them. Breedings can number even 1000 individuals that are ussualy kept by the biggest males - and of course they have great amount of females and offspring...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Thefultron:
concept: The Composter
The Composterdon Dumdum Giah is a magnificent animal that nobody knows much about. It lives in the costal jungle of southern “Saskatchewan”. Generally this creature is content with life, except everybody thinks it’s a kind of mastaba. This animal grows food for itself in a “crock pot” style compost garden grown in the “natural” bowl located on its back. It eats that food. But not without the help of the ecosystem around it (like somebody else I know). All around the composterdon dumdum Giah, animal activity comes alive as it gently strides by. The most visible and busiest of the animals are the little orange 3-armed lizards seen in the illustration below. They work feverishly to help cultivate the soil on its’ back, and scavenge the jungle floor for bits of rotting vegetation to burry in its mucousy dark soil. They then hand feed this creature the grassy plants it grows. It is difficult to understand much of the orange lizards’ behaviour because they work so damn fast running in and out of the depths of foliage sprouting up quickly in this humid environment. One theory is that they work as a team just give’ner.…Why? Because they are trying to get that Composterdon to poop a lot. They mash about the stool with their bare hands! And then, they pick out all the big juicy parasitic worms!! Competition over the “grubs” among the orange lizards seem virtually non-existent. Rather it is fair, so we won’t talk about that boring stuff. The tiles at the bottom reveal the meaning of All
Love, the fultron
P.S. They lay their eggs in the darkness of the hollowed out uranium mines that someone filled back in with drums full of really old “depleted” uranium. The pink gland representing its 9th chakra guides the animal through the darkness of the poisonous mines, eliminating the ancient murals painted on the walls.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------VegasMike:
concept: This creature gives new meaning to the phrase "Born to die." This hermaphrodite has internal sex organs which produce a fetus that travels along the exterior umbilical cord. The fetus grows and continues down the chord till its reaches the massive jaws of its parent. When the fetus is ripe for harvest the creature will use its tongue to pull it off like a grape from a vine. The parent will usually let the strongest fetus's detach and roll off to become another self sustaining member of the species.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

vote goes to Redehlert - wonderfully rendered, great colors and brush work, light&shade are beautifully done, and the concept, though a bit weird and got its logical pitfalls, is marvelous.
good job buddy.
runnerup - jakkas - how the heck you paint so goddamn gorgously?! the rendering is so delicate and detailed , your creature`s face and hair are amazing...
get some free time - and post a TUT, man.

We all pay for life with death, so everything in between should be free.-Bill Hicks

It was a really hard choice between Plate and redhelert, but in the end I voted for Plate, though it was a really close call. The creature looks very nice, its a great design, and an original idea. Redhelert's creature has the same qualities, and they way its presented makes a stronger statement. But, I already knew what oroborous was, and have never seen a cactopus on the other hand. Some reason huh? : P Good job both you guys!

Thanks, broken! Originality is what I strive for, since my rendering skills can't even compare to some of these guys...

Redehlert looks to be sitting pretty with a solid 50% of the vote so far. I had to vote for him as well - terrific concept and a beautiful rendering, and I've said it before, but the infinite shape is a brilliant touch. It's not often that we see such clever symbolism in a COW entry.

So many great entries this week, as always. Kinda makes me wish we could get a multiple vote like the ChOW occasionally does.

This is a tough one but Im going with Cognition:sb. The rendering isnt the absolute best here but something about the colors and lighting make me want to look at it. Good job to everyone there were a lot of really good pieces.

Jakkas and redehlert are great! Jonoy nice detail man.

oooh I saw the new topic, should be another good round next week, see you there!

i'm putting up the hell yeah for my man, broken this round. it grabbed me from go and i'm so happy that you didn't over do it. bravo, mate!
jakkas, noche, tully, mikec and plate were also in the running on this vote because i found so many wonderful elements in your works.

and super thanks for the votes!
chuck,mate -- your input greatly improved my piece. i'm open to hear what you think about the concept text (i pulled it from my arse of ∞ ... ).
cheers!
d

There is no "I" in team, but there is an "I" in pie. And there's an "i" in meat pie. Meat is the anagram of team...~Shaun "Shaun of the Dead"http://www.cognitionstudio.com

Hey MikeC -
Thanks! I guess to better explain, the growing of it's tail serves as its own food source. I was being a bit abstract but I had it in mind. Voting has a looong way to go, but I seriously appreciate the 'gallery' comment. Actually, I'm floored!

Again, thanks to all that have either voted for this piece or gave it a nod!

Cheers,
Dave

There is no "I" in team, but there is an "I" in pie. And there's an "i" in meat pie. Meat is the anagram of team...~Shaun "Shaun of the Dead"http://www.cognitionstudio.com